At the moment a lot of people have DVD's but not Blu-ray players. Blu-ray has taken sooooo long to come out because they're still trying to copy protect the data on BD. I still can't get blank BD disks here. I can get a burner but whats the use.

So a customer wants 500 copies of your work, give him 500 thumbsticks with the HD content on. If he wants DVD's thats easy and cheap. If he going to buy a BD player he might as well get a multimedia player which is much cheaper and won't have to fork out for a disks either.

I'm not sure at the moment, is it possible to rip a Blu-ray movie? I read that it is impossible because the HDCP "High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection protocol running in BD players. We all know it's just a matter of time before the hackers rip it open and our content is free for all.

So the question remains, how and on what do you sell you content?

What's the customer going to play the thumbdrive on?

If he going to buy a BD player he might as well get a multimedia player which is much cheaper and won't have to fork out for a disks either.

Nope, the Mede8er is over $300. BD players are going for $199.

So it seems distribution is still an open question.

The chances of practically everyone having a media player are remote - unless they will one day be incorporated into HD TVs. This is quite likely - my Bravia already has a USB slot for playing stills.

Then there will be other issues:

- Packaging and presentation, with all the useful information that can contain.

- Unless a "record once only" thumb drive arrives on the scene, the data on them would be too easily overwritten.

A media drive is a great way to watch your OWN hi-def content. But as a final end-product to the consumer, it's dead in the water. And please, no more excuses about expensive burners and media. That's no longer relevant.

Most of my work is weddings. I just started to burn Blu-Rays in the last month, and yes, my customers ARE asking for it. I charge an extra $150 for the first disc, $35 for copies. The first person who ordered one basically covered the cost of my burner. And with media in the $5 or less range, I'd making a decent profit there as well.

Should I instead give them a media drive (that they would have to pay for of course) and inform them if they also want to show it at their friend's house, they'll have to lug the drive with them?

This is a silly argument.

Quite right Peter. In that scenario as Jay mentioned we also, after a big event compile a DVD,rip a few hundred and send them
off to different sponsors and management teams. these are SD PAL DVD’s nicely packaged etc. so we produce to current trends
We could easily have sent them a nicely presented e-mail with a link for them to download the content in HD or SD, but this would appear to be a lack of service to some, so DVD’s will stick around just like cancer and the common cold

Blu Ray popped onto the media highway and has been driving in the slow lane ever since, and is about to driven over by a speeding bus called media player it’s only a matter of time
At present pirated movies is driving this bus so that will give you an idea how fast this guy is moving

Distribution, this is the make or break factor . there are solutions to this hurdle
As a content producer I would look into this for future business, and get ready for it. Those who are set up for it and start utilizing it now will be more competitive in the market place

I have to agree that right now many people don't know about media in general. But they are learning as things change, for example just as when everyone had a VHS or Betamax player the DVD player came along. Now a simple DVD player is cheap and is in every computer. All new LCD TV's have USB, HDMI and a host of input jacks.

In South Africa BD players cost more than multimedia players. The way I look at it, why get a BD player that only does one thing when the multimedia player does a hell of a lot more and can act as a backup device as well. As for carting this thing around, it come with a carry pouch because it's meant to be portable. It can connect to PC screen or even connect as a NAS drive via UTP network connection. There are other other multimedia players that are cheaper and cost a little more than a good DVD player that can only play SD.

So you've shot the the wedding in HD but render it down to SD so the old DVD player can play it. Of course, you have granny & grandad who have a DVD player and they want it on DVD. In that case the horse has already bolted. But with HD becoming a standard, at least up to 1280x720, nows the time to migrate to hard drive systems. Next year when South Africa hosts and wins the soccer 2010, it will be viewed by millions in HD, at least the HD part is true.

I just see it as the new trend in media management.

And just to answer some world cup questions

http://capetouristguides.wordpress.com/2009/10/01/world-cup-2010-these-are-hysterical/

Boy, you guys seem to be making a great argument for the Netflix model of distributing video via the internet.

Before you jump all over this by making the observation that users will not connect their computers to their wide screen TVs -- I watch Netflix (internet) movies directly through my Samsung BDP1600 player.

What about quality? It's not as good as watching cable directly, but it's pretty darn good and getting better. As technology advances I think we'll see it equal direct cable.

BTW, with a recent firmware update I can now watch Youtube via my DVD player. Of course, the quality is not as good as Netflix and it's got a lousy user interface, but I'm sure this will improve as well.

...Jerry

An afterthought: I'm predicting that future TVs will have this capability builtin - and you won't even need to route your internet connection thru a separate box.

I find it oddly ironic that some people will rave about the ability to watch crap video on their TV's instead of their computers. YouTube on my 42"? Gosh, sign me up!

As indicative of the web generation, quality is taking a backseat to convenience in regards to what some people will watch.

OK, let me ask everyone here, who still uses a gramaphone? Or even 8 track tape, 4 track? What about LP's? We are at present using CD's which is fading as MP3 "players" are everywwhere. As quoted earlier you can't expect someone to lug around an MP3 player. That sounds so strange to hear that now but a few years ago an MP3 player was a piece of software. Media players is a piece of software and multimedia players are small light weight portable devices. DVD and CD sales are plummeting because people buy/download/copy from the web to their multimedia players. I read somewhere that pop stars make more money from their tunes becoming ringtones. I don't think Hollywood is happy about the situation either that's why they are trying to tie Blu-ray down.

Call me a purist, but the ability to watch the latest episode of Lost on a 2.5" iPod screen is a step backward, not forward.

The bar is getting lower and lower.

John, those are S.A. dollars (Rand) which translates into about $335.00 U.S.
======
Thanks Jay,

Should have noticed that.

John

"I find it oddly ironic that some people will rave about the ability to watch crap video on their TV's instead of their computers. YouTube on my 42"? Gosh, sign me up!

1) My comments were about the way videos are distributed, not the "ability to view crap video [via YouTube]" Matter of fact, I think I supported your argument that Youtube is crap.
2) Have you seen Netflix videos on your 42"? I think you'll find that the quality is better than your pre-conceived idea.

...Jerry

Not the streaming version via a media player. I have Netflix, but it's mostly Blu-Rays my mail. But you're right, soon the quality will be at least up to DVD standards. When it is, I'll look into more.